Cheers NTCompatible for this one. Microsoft plans to make available this week a test version of a new tool intended to attract Java developers to the company's .Net Web services plan.

The tool, Visual J#.Net, won't allow programmers to build standalone Java applications. Instead, it will let programmers use the Java language to write code that works only with Microsoft's forthcoming .Net plan, said Tony Goodhew, a product manager at Microsoft.

In January, Microsoft announced its intention to build the tool, along with other tools to let programmers migrate older Java applications to .Net, the company's wide-ranging plan for moving business computing onto the Web.

.Net includes tools for developers, server software aimed at large companies, and a fee-based Web services plan aimed at individuals called .Net My Services. Most parts of the plan won't be available until next year.